


Nothing Could Be Quite As Sweet As Holding Your Hand

by Closeted_Calliope



Category: Trolls World Tour (2020), Trollstopia (2020)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pre-Relationship, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Yearning, and is a they/them nb, friends to potentially lovers, growing closer, hand holding, laguna makes a cameo, late night converstations, panicked gay, would've tagged that as gay panic but it turns out that's something much less desriable
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-25
Updated: 2020-11-25
Packaged: 2021-03-09 21:02:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27692506
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Closeted_Calliope/pseuds/Closeted_Calliope
Summary: As he's walking Synth back to Techno Lagoon after a long day of hanging out together, Branch comes to some realizations about himself.
Relationships: Branch/Synth (Trollstopia)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 27





	Nothing Could Be Quite As Sweet As Holding Your Hand

**Author's Note:**

> Look as the current sole writer of Brynth content on this website, I felt the need to write another fic. Not only because we could always use some more Brynth content around here, but also because my buddy Ros from the gay trolls discord suggested this prompt when I was trying to write the first fic. Both prompts I got there were inspiring so i decided to just write for both of them lmao. Also, this isn't related to my first Brynth story Kandi Crush. This is an entirely separate story. Regardless, I hope you enjoy!

" No way, dude, I cannot believe that actually happened."

"I'm telling you, Synth, the Pop trolls were imprisoned and eaten by Bergens for hundreds of years, and that's why we didn't know that you guys even existed until Barb pulled her World Tour stunt."

Branch could almost see the gears turning in Synth's head as they continued walking through the empty paths of Trollstopia. An involuntary smirk crawled onto his face at the sight of his visual confusion.

It had been a long day for the two of them; as soon as they were done with any responsibilities they had, they had chosen to hang out. There was some competition for who could whirlpool surf the longest without falling, as well as a particularly relaxing treaditation session, but for the most part they had had speant the whole day talking to each other, about their lives, their cultures, their experiences in Trollstopia so far. And as nighttime rolled in and Branch was walking Synth back to Techno Lagoon, the subject of what the Pop trolls'.... _situation_.... was prior to the World Tour happened to come up. 

Synth shook his head in disbelief and asked, "Why would they spend hundreds of years doing that?"

"They thought it would make them happy."

"Nuh-uh, no way, that can't be true."

"I'm telling you, Synth, they even had a whole holiday devoted to eating trolls called Trollstice."

Synth's eyes nearly popped out of his head. Branch couldn't help but snicker at his expression. He'd forgotten how strange that whole situation had been. Sure, it seemed normal enough for him and the other Pop trolls, but for trolls that hadn't been through that experience, it would seem a little jarring. He supposed that's just how it was when telling people your probably traumatic experiences.

"Well then, how did you get them to stop, you know, eating you guys?"

"Poppy showed them the power of friendship."

"YOU'VE GOTTA BE KIDDING ME."

"Ok yeah, that was a bit of an exaggeration," Branch admitted, "but she did show them that they could be happy without eating us and by just having fun, so like that's basically the same thing."

Synth let out a whistle and shook his head. "That troll could probably befriend a demon."

"I mean she befriended Barb, so-"

"You can't just say that about a queen, man!" Synth exclaimed as Branch burst into laughter, but he was laughing too.

Branch countered with a sly grin, "You don't think she'd agree with me?" 

Synth made a face. "You win this round, Dubstep."

"Oh? I wasn't aware this was a competition."

"It's not- I wasn't trying t- I- oh shhhh," Synth stammered before crossing his arms in mock irritation, unable to hide the very real flush appearing on his cheeks. 

But Branch failed to notice this; he was too busy thinking about how truly great of a day it had been. Synth had told him a lot about the culture and customs of the Techno trolls: the self expression of glitter and face paint, the bonds formed by trading kandi, and the overlying importantce of PLUR. Branch in turn, had explained some of the Pop trolls' holidays and history, considering Pop trolls had been practically unheard of for so long.

Branch genuinely liked spending time with and learning about Synth.

Perhaps more than he should.

Branch knew he was crushing and he was crushing _hard_. Every time Synth looked at him, every time he called him 'Dubstep', when he took him by the hand to lead him to some fun activity he had planned. His heart would swell and he'd blush super hard and when it got really bad his ears would begin to twitch a little and he'd just have to pray that Synth hadn't noticed.

Thankfully, he never did, or at least never pointed it out.

Branch turned his head to find Synth looking at him with an expectant look on his face.

"Well?"

Branch's face burned as he stuttered, "W-what? Sorry, I-I was zoned out for a bit there, heh."

"Ha, no worries, bro, I was just saying how i never really noticed the stars before. They sure are incredible, huh?"

There was an opening in the trees that opened up to show the ever-expanding infinity of space above them. Of course, though, they could only really see the moon and a chilead of stars. That didn't diminish any of its natural beauty, though. 

Branch followed Synth's gaze up towards the sky before returning to look at the glee on Synth's face. "Yeah, they sure are."

Synth, still looking at the stars, continued, "You know, us Techno trolls don't really see the stars much. It's not that we can't, we just so get so caught up with out raves that we sometimes forget that there's a whole other world out of the water. This was one of the reasons I was so excited to be a part of the Trollstopia project; there's all this new stuff and all these cool people and these new experience I never would've gotten if I'd stayed in Techno Reef. Like meeting you!"

"M-me?" Branch echoed, a little taken aback. 

"Shell yeah, dude! You've easily become one of my closest friends while I've stayed here. Most of my best memories here so far have been with you, and not to mention the killer times we always have at the wakeup rave, or when you helped save me from the quick-glitter. I guess what I'm trying to say here is, uh, thanks bro! For being a friend."

Branch could've sworn his heart stopped. "Y-yeah, no problem dude. I-"

There was a rustling in the shrubbery. Synth let out a yelp and hid behind Branch, who nearly screamed because of the sudden physical contact with the cute boy. 

Still, he managed to swallow his feelings and interrogate the bush, "Who's there? Show yourself!"

A baby Cuddle Pup stumbled out. He sniffed the air a little bit before letting out a short bark and scurrying back into the bush.

Branch let out a sight of relief. _At least it's only a baby_ , he thought. 

"Oh. That wasn't so bad, huh?"

"Yeah, just a baby Cuddle Pup. Nothing to worry about." Branch actively decided to avoid telling him about what adult Cuddle Pups were like. 

"I wasn't scared, you know," Synth added defensively. "Just- surprised me is all."

"Oh yeah, I don't doubt it," Branch replied, clearly unconvinced as they continued towards Techno Lagoon.

However, they had gone no more than 5 steps when Branch realized that, somewhere in his short-lived panic, Synth had grabbed his hand.

And now they were holding hands. 

As they walked together on a moonlit night.

Alone.

_dontpanicdontpanicdontpanicdontpanicdontpanictrollysmokesdontpanic_

Branch took a deep breath as subtly as he could manage.

This was cool. This was fine.

Just two bros hanging out, walking one of them home.

Just two dudes being guys.

Totally normal.

It was totally normal to be hyperaware of the way your friend's fingers felt in your own.

Super normal.

It was only about a 10ish minute walk to Techno lagoon. Branch could totally handle 10 minutes holding his-"

"Oh wow, I didn't notice i was holding your hand there, dude. Sorry."

Branch felt Synth pull his hand from out of his grasp.

"W-wait!" Branch held his hand a little tighter.

_Branch what are you doing?!? He's gonna know for sure! Quick, come up with a reason that doesn't sound stupid!_

"I just, uh, want to keep you safe f-from any more Cuddle Pups we run into...."

_You absolute moron. He's never gonna buy-_

"Awww, thanks bro! I can always count on you to keep me safe," Synth said with appreciation, giving Branch's hand a friendly squeeze.

Branch nervously laughed, "Yeah, dude, no problem,"

The walk to Techno Lagoon was quiet, but not uncomfortably so. The air was cool, but in a refreshing way. As they continued walking, Branch felt himself grow more comfortable and ease the tension in his body a bit. Something about spending time with this guy made it pretty easy to relax. They didn't talk during their walk, but they also didn't really need to. 

Branch tried not to focus too hard on how surprisingly warm Synth's hand was. Or how he could feel the tiniest scales layered across his skin. Or how just standing this close to him let Branch smell Synth's natural salty scent. But all of these things were hard to ignore when they're literally all he could think about.

Before he knew it, the journey to Techno Lagoon had ended, and they were still holding hands.

"Ah, uh, sorry about that," Branch apologized as he wiped the sweat from his hands on his pants.

Synth grinned with a shrug. "Don't worry about it, Dubstep. I felt very safe that whole walk home."

"Nice, that is, uh, that's great."

"I assume I'll be seeing you tomorrow for the wakeup rave?"

"Of course! I wouldn't miss it for the world," Branch assured him with a thumbs up.

"Cool. Have a good night, bro."

"Yeah, man, you too."

The two of them just kind of stood there awkwardly for a second, waiting for the other to start heading towards their respective home. 

During this uncomfortable moment, Branch couldn't help but notice how absolutely handsome Synth looked with the moonlight cascading down on him. He was......truly one of the most beautiful trolls he had ever had the pleasure of viewing. 

He took a step towards Synth. 

A feeling of warmth burst from his chest. 

He placed a hand on his cheek. 

Synth.......really was something special, huh?

He felt himself leaning in.

............aaaaaand that's when his brain caught up with his heart.

_WHAT ARE YOU DOING THIS IS A BAD IDEA HE PROBABLY DOESN'T EVEN LIKE YOU THAT WAY ABORT MISSION_

"Uh."

Branch jumped a mile back, his face bright blue with blush and sweat streaming down his face. He spoke very fast and very nervously. "YEAH OK SORRY ABOUT THAT THERE WAS SOMETHING ON YOUR FACE OK ILL SEE YOU IN THE MORNING COOLGOTTAGO _GOODNIGHT_."

Branch bolted from the lagoon and ignored Synth's calls after him. He didn't stop running until he was at the bunker.

He let out a very tired and embarrassed sigh.

He slowly managed to drag himself down to his bedroom where he threw himself onto his bed fully clothed. He picked up the nearest pillow and proceeded to scream as loud as he could into it. 

_Trolly smokes, I am such an idiot._

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_*knock knock knock knock knock knock kno-*_

Laguna opened their door with a sigh, rubbing their eyes as they put on their glasses. "What do you want, Synth? I was trying to get some sleep."

"Laguna I am so in love with this boy that it's not even funny."

Laguna groaned. They were very emotionally done with having Synth vent all his pining onto them. 

"......Just come inside and tell me what happened.:"

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

" -and then we walk the whole way *holding hands*. I was trying so hard to be cool with it, but my mind the whole time was just *screaming*, and then after he drops me off, I think's going in for a kiss, *but it turns out there was just something on my FACE*!"

Synth buried his face in his hands. "Laguna, I have it so bad for him......and he doesn't even know."

Laguna stared with exhaustion at the troll splayed out dramatically on her couch. They knew as well as any troll with a functioning brain that these two idiots were madly in love with each other but were also painfully oblivious to the other's advances. It was a little sad to watch, to be quite honest. They were also certain that Branch was definitely trying to kiss him, but chickened out at the last second, just based off what they knew about Branch as a person.

Of course, they could just tell him that Branch clearly likes him back, but it's not like he'd believe them anyway.

Thus, they are stuck in a horribly repetitive loop until someone makes a move.

"......Are we done here? Can I go back to sleep now?"

Synth sighed with a nod as he got up off her couch. "Yeah. Thanks for letting me vent, Laguna. I don't think I would've been able to sleep if didn't talk to someone first."

"It's not an issue," Laguna told him truthfully, as they wouldn't bother sitting through his ramblings if they genuinely disliked it, even if it happened at the late hours of the night.

Synth waved goodbye as he left their house. He also left the door open, like the lovesick fool he was.

And as Laguna got up to close the door behind him, they muttered quietly under their breath, "If these two don't get together soon, I am going to lock them in a room together so I can get a decent night's sleep."

**Author's Note:**

> I felt like Laguna was a good way to end this one lol. But yeah, I hope y'all liked the story! I don't really have much to say for this author's note other than I am in a very Brynth mood right now and also if you're from the gay trolls discord, hi and also ily in particular. That's all for this one folk's. I'll see you next time!
> 
> -CC


End file.
